Extinguished
by Hawkpath of ShadowClan
Summary: During his battle with Brokenstar, Firepaw was killed. Moons later, the ShadowClan's tyrant runs a dictatorship over the four clans, and all hope seems lost. But maybe, the fire hasn't been put out. Follow Flamekit, the son of Sandstorm and Dustpelt, as he is faced wit a new destiny; a destiny to rekindle the fire, and prove that ThunderClan will never be extinguished.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey guys! I'm here with a new story for y'all. I have adopted the idea for this story from Storm-Eyes-Osprey, so all credit for the idea goes to him/her. (Sorry I don't know your gender) The plot is all mine, though. It takes place at the end of Into the Wild, but instead of ThunderClan winning, and driving out Brokenstar, ShadowClan wins and takes over the forest. But anyway, on to the story. Hope you guys like it!**

_Prologue _

(Sandpaw's POV)

The ThunderClan warriors filed back into camp through the tunnel of brambles. They were all horribly beaten. Whitestorm, who was in the lead, was bleeding profusely through a wound that ran from his shoulder to the middle of his belly. He was leaning on Graypaw, who looked no better. The other warriors who shuffled in after them were all equally beaten up.

Sandpaw looked around frantically for Spottedleaf, before she remembered that the sweet medicine cat was dead. She bowed her head in grief. The sandy she-cat looked up quickly when she heard a surprised yowl from Bluestar.

Her eyes found what they were looking for as she looked toward the entrance to camp, where Brokenstar and Blackfoot were padding in. Sandpaw's eyes widened as she saw what the two enemy warriors were carrying. Blackfoot was carrying the limp lifeless body of Firepaw, and Brokenstar was doing the same with Yellowfang. The ShadowClan leader dropped Yellowfang's body and let out a sharp yowl. On signal, more of his loyal warriors fanned through the the entrance.

"I have killed this traitor, and your precious kittypet." He sneered. "Your warriors are beaten, and you have no medicine cat. Your only choice is to surrender to ShadowClan." Disagreeing murmurs rippled throughout the Clan, but they were weak. The Clan new that things weren't looking good. We were badly outnumbered by the ShadowClan goons, and it was true, we had no medicine cat.

Bluestar padded in front of Brokenstar and stood nose to nose with him. Her tail drooped, and the usual proud glimmer in her eyes was gone. She knew that ThunderClan was beaten. She took a deep breath, and spoke.

"Though we may surrender to you today, ThunderClan will never cease to exist." she said loud enough for the whole Clan to hear. Despite the weak state that ThunderClan was in, the cats in the camp yowled loud enough for them to be heard at Fourtrees. Sandpaw joined in, yowling as loud as she could. Still yowling, she thought:

_I will never loose faith in ThunderClan, no matter what happens._


	2. Chapter 2

**Double update! Aren't you guys lucky ducks. Well, I just thought that the prologue was super short, so I tacked on the first chapter, too. Oh, and sorry about the grammatical and spelling errors in the prologue I was rushing to get it up. **

(Twelve Moons Later; Sandstorm's P.O.V.)

Twelve moons. Twelve long moons had passed since the day ShadowClan took over ThunderClan. It hadn't taken them long to conquer the other Clans as well. Soon, all the cats in the forest were living at Fourtrees, under Brokenstar's rule. He was harsh, to say the least. He had broken the will of almost every cat, making them submissive to him and his goons. Sandpaw, now Sandstorm, had kept her promise not to lose faith in ThunderClan. Though many former ThunderClan warriors had cracked under Brokenstar's harsh reign, there were a choice few that had remained strong.

The sandy she-cat padded out of the nursery, yes, the nursery, and walked up to her mate, Dustpelt. It wasn't often that cats had time to find mates, these days, but Sandstorm and Dustpelt had been friends almost since birth. It just made sense for them to become mates. Sandstorm had always felt that there was something missing in their relationship, however.

"Hey, Sandstorm. How are the kits?" Dustpelt asked, twining his dark tabby tail with her light brown one. Sandstorm had just kitted the night before. It wasn't particularly rough, but since there wasn't a definitive medicine cat anymore, there was nobody to take care of her.

"They are beautiful." She sighed. "I just wish they didn't have to live this life."

"I know." Dustpelt replied, pressing his muzzle against hers. "Do you want to go name them?" Sandstorm nodded, and they padded back into the nursery, where three kits were squirming on the bare ground. The apprentices were no longer required to get moss for the queens and elders. In fact, Brokenstar forbade it. He said that our energy should be focused on keeping our warriors strong.

Sandstorm proceeded to curl around her kits, and nudge them toward her belly to feed. The first kit was a dark brown tabby tom with Sandstorm's green eyes. The next one, was a she-kit that had Sandstorm's sandy brown fur, with Dustpelt's yellow eyes. The last kit, was an orange pelted tom, with wide, curious, green eyes.

"You name the one that looks like you." Sandstorm urged. Dustpelt narrowed his eyes in concentration, before deciding on the name.

"How about Darkkit?" Dustpelt suggested.

"Perfect." Sandstorm purred. "How about Willowkit for the she-kit?"

"I love it." Dustpelt agreed. Their eyes rested on the last kit. "You know," Dustpelt started. "He kind of looks like-"

"Firepaw!" Sandstorm cut him off. Even though the neither of them had respected the former kittypet while he was alive, they had both grown to respect the loyalty he had shown to ThunderClan during the short time he resided with them. He had died a true warriors' death. "Can we name him Flamekit, y'know after Firepaw?" Sandstorm asked.

"Of course." Dustpelt said. "Darkkit, Willowkit,, and Flamekit. They are beautiful. I love you Sandstorm."

"I love you too, Dustpelt." She replied. She really meant it, too. He nuzzled each of the kits in turn, then walked out the the nursery.

Curling tighter around her kits, Sandstorm slipped into a deep sleep.

(Flamekit's P.O.V.)

"C'mon, Flamekit. Wake up! We wanna go play." Flamekit winced as a small paw prodded his side sharply.

"Okay, okay." Flamekit grumbled. "I'm getting up." He struggled to blink the sleep out of his eyes, as Darkkit and Willowkit proceeded to poke at his sides.

"Darkkit, Willowkit, give Flamekit a chance to wake up." Came Sandstorm's voice.

"It's OK Sandstorm. I'm up." The orange tom squeaked. Sandstorm purred, a warm glimmer in her eyes. "Can we go play now?"

"Yes. Just don't get under any cat's paws." she warned. Flamekit bundled out of the bramble thicket that served as the nursery. His eyes widened as he saw the camp form the first time. Yesterday he wanted to go outside with his littermates, but Sandstorm said that it was too cold.

"It's so big." Flamekit marveled.

"I never thought there could be so many cats in one place." Willowkit agreed. The three of them stumbled into a clearing surrounded by four gigantic trees. Flamekit craned his neck as far as he could go, and he could only barely see the top of one of the trees. The top branches seemed like they could touch the clouds.

"C'mon, last one to that bush across the clearing is crow-food!" Darkkit called. Flamekit shot off, galloping as fast as his short legs would carry him. He was just inching ahead of Willowkit, when he slammed into a set of long, white legs.

"Hey!" A sharp voice yelped.

"Sorry." Flamekit squealed, looking at the ground.

"Who's kit are you?" The tom growled menacingly, thrusting his muzzle near Flamekit's head.

"Sandstorm's." Flamekit answered, his voice quivering.

"How old?" He growled again.

"Three da-"

"Look at me when you are talking to me!" The tom demanded sharply, cuffing Flamekit over the head. Blood trickled down the side of his face and into his eyes, as he realized that the warrior had cuffed him with his claws unsheathed. Trying to ignore the stinging coming from his ear and face, he looked up and met the eyes of the white warrior.

"I'm three days old." He repeated, trying his best to keep his voice steady. The tom blinked his yellow eyes, and turned to walk away. "Wait!" Flamekit called before he was out of ear shot. "What's your name?"

"Blackfoot." The warrior mewed, then turned and padded out of the clearing.

"Flamekit, Flamekit!" The orange tom heard his littermates skittering back towards him.

"What happened to you?" Willowkit asked, her eyes widening as she saw the wounds on Flamekit's head.

"I bumped into a warrior when we were racing." He responded. He wanted to explore more with his littermates, but he didn't want to run into anymore warriors, and his scratches were beginning to hurt quite a bit. His littermates seemed to be tired, too. "Why don't we go back to Sandstorm?" Darkkit and Willowkit nodded tiredly, and the three of them turned and padded wearily back to the nursery.

Squeezing back into the den between the brambles, they heard Sandstorm speaking to another cat.

"I just don't want my kits to lead this kind of life, Bluestar." Came their mother's voice.

"It's Blue_fur_ now. If anybody hears you calling me Bluestar, you're gonna be in trouble." another voice warned.

"I don't care!" Sandstorm spat. "It shouldn't be this way!" she turned and met the eyes of her kits, noticing them for the fist time since they walked into the den.

"I'd better go." murmured the cat that Sandstorm had called Bluestar. She pushed past the three kits and out of the nursery. Sandstorm sighed and motioned with her tail for her kits to come to her.

"Sandstorm, what did you mean when you said that you didn't want us to live this life?" Willowkit asked shyly. Sandstorm let out a huge sigh, then spoke, her voice laced with regret.

"Four season's ago, long before you kits were born, there were four clans."

"Four Clans?" Darkkit exclaimed. "But there's only ShadowClan!"

"When I was an apprentice, there were four clans: ThunderClan, RiverClan, WindClan, and ShadowClan. Everybody lived in the territory that best suited their clan. ThunderClan lived in thick forest so they could creep through the undergrowth. RiverClan lived by the river so they could swim and fish. WindClan lived on the moor, so they could run and catch rabbits. And ShadowClan lived in the marsh, where they could slink through the shadows and hunt frogs."

"Well then why is there only one clan now?" Flamekit asked.

"I'm getting to that." Sandstorm snapped. The three kits visibly flinched at their mother's anger. "I'm sorry, this is just a bit of a sore spot for me." she explained to the kits before continuing. "The clans lived together in the forest for seasons upon seasons before Brokenstar became leader. Before him, ShadowClan was respectable, and followed the warrior code."

"What's the warrior code?" Willowkit asked.

"It was the code of honor that all warriors used to follow before Brokenstar took over." she told the curious kits. "But then Brokenstar became leader, and he began attacking other Clans without reason, and making kits apprentices before they were ready, and turning ShadowClan into nothing more than a codeless band of rogues. I was in ThunderClan when this was going on. Bluestar was our leader. She'd had enough of ShadowClan's tricks when they stole ThunderClan kits and killed our medicine cat, Spottedleaf."

"What's a medicine cat?" Darkkit inquired.

"A cat that learned all about herbs and healing instead of becoming a warrior." Sandstorm explained yet again. "Anyway, we decided to attack ShadowClan, and get the kits back. The raid went horribly wrong. Two members of our clan were killed in the battle. Yellowfang, a the former ShadowClan medicine cat that had taken refuge in our clan, and a former kittypet named Firepaw were murdered by Brokenstar and his goons." Sandstorm seethed. "Soon after, Brokenstar conquered RiverClan and WindClan. Brokenstar broke nearly every cat's will, and now, we just kind of go along with it. But what I meant when I said I don't want you live this life, is that I wanted you to live the real Clan life. The kind with the warrior code."

"Oh." Said Willowkit simply. "Is this really a true story, Sandstorm?"

"Yes, of course it is, darling." Sandstorm whispered in her ear, her softness returning after telling that story. "But you can't tell _anybody _that I told you this. If you do, then Brokenstar will kill me, and then he will kill you. Do you understand?" The kits nodded, their eyes wide with fear. "That's enough stories, though. You kits need to get to sleep."

Flamekit snuggled deep into the nest, curling up to get warm. He was almost asleep when he thought he heard Sandstorm's voice whisper, ever so quietly into his ear.

"Don't lead this life, Flamekit. Find a way to fight back."

The kit sighed. _It was probably just the wind._ He thought, as he drifted off into sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey y'all! Hawkpath here with another update! I really should be studying for my Geometry final, but this is more fun.**

**Stuffed Watermelon:**** Simple, but effective. Your words are much appreciated. **

**Storm-Eyes-Osprey:**** Thanks so much! For both of the reviews. I'm glad you like it, seeing as you are the one to give me the idea for your story. Oh, and I'm a girl too. **

**Anywho, on with the story!**

"Flamekit, wake up." The orange tom struggled against sleep's clutches as his mother murmured in his ear.

"What is it?" He slurred, trying to blink sleep out of his eyes.

"Mudfur's gonna check your wound." She explained.

"Who's Mudfur?"

"He used to be RiverClan's medicine cat. But since Brokenstar forbade medicine cats, he treats cats in secret." Flamekit turned his head around to see a dark, scraggly brown tom behind him.

"If Brokenstar doesn't allow medicine cats, why do you still heal?" He asked.

"Because I don't believe in his ways." Mudfur answered simply.

"What if he catches you?"

"I'm an old cat." Mudfur sighed. "I've lived a long life, and I've tried to help in what ways I can. If Brokenstar decides to punish me for doing StarClan's will, then so be it." Flamepaw nodded, trying to understand his point of view. Willowkit stirred behind him, jolting him from his thoughts. She looked sleepily at Sandstorm, then immediately perked up when she laid eyes on Mudfur, and the pile of leaves at his paws.

"Willowkit, this is Mudfur." Sandstorm introduced. "He is going to treat Flamekit's wound."

"Is he one of those medicine cats you told us about?" Willowkit asked, her eyes wide.

"Yes. But you can't tell anybody, or else we will all be in trouble with Brokenstar. And you know how that ends up." The sandy she-cat warned. Willowkit nodded solemnly. Mudfur proceeded to chew the leaves that were at his paws. He spat out the scraps of leaf and began to lick the juice into Flamekit's scratches.

"What are you doing?" Willowkit inquired as Mudfur's eyes narrowed in concentration.

"This," He motioned to the dark green leaves he was chewing. "Is marigold. It helps heal the wound and stop infection." Willowkit's eyes glistened with interest.

"Is this the kind of stuff that medicine cats used to learn?"

"Yes." Mudfur answered mournfully. He finished Flamekit's treatment, and buried the leaf scraps.

"Mudfur?" Willowkit mewed shyly.

"Hmmmm?" Mudfur hummed absentmindedly.

"Will you teach me more about herbs?" Mudfur jerked his head toward the sandy kit in surprise.

"What about Brokenstar?"

"Sandstorm told us about the old clans, and how they had medicine cats. I want to learn about this honorable path. We can be real sneaky, so Brokenstar won't catch us." Willowkit pleaded. Mudfur glanced at Sandstorm for permission, who nodded.

"I will teach you." He mewed. He sounded solemn, but Flamepaw saw a glimmer in his eyes that showed how happy he was that Willowkit had taken an interest in herbs.

"Yay!" Willowkit bounced up and down.

"Remember," Mudfur warned. "You can't tell _anybody._ Not even Darkkit."

"But Darkkit wouldn't tell anybody." Willowkit protested.

"We can't risk it." Mudfur mewed firmly. "I will not risk the life of a young cat." Willowkit opened her mouth as if she was going to protest again, but seemed to think better of it. She complied.

Flamekit, who had witnessed the entire scene, was also interested in this topic.

"Mudfur." He began timidly. "Would you mind if I tagged along, too?" Mudfur exchanged a glance with Sandstorm, and muttered something along the lines of: 'Putting my own life on the line for a bunch of kits.' But Flamekit could tell he was glad that young cats were taking an interest in the ways of the old clans.

"If Sandstorm says it's OK." He agreed. Flamekit looked at his mother pleadingly. She nodded slowly. Flamekit saw wariness in her eyes, but he also saw another emotion. One he hadn't seen in any cat's eyes ever before. It was like a light shining at the end of a dark tunnel. Sandstorm dipped her head respectfully to Mudfur as he pushed his way out of the bramble thicket.

Just then, Darkkit began to stir. He blinked repeatedly and looked up at Sandstorm. Their mother stood up shook her fur out.

"I'm going to go hunt with Dustpelt. You kits should stay in the nursery until I get back. I don't want you guys to get hurt worse than Flamekit did yesterday. Promise me that you won't leave this nest."

"We promise." The three kits chorused.

"Yeah, we can play moss ball in here!" Darkkit compromised. Sandstorm's eyes glittered with warmth as she poked her head out of the den. When she came back in, she was carrying a ball of moss in her jaws. She dropped it, and walked out of the den.

"I call throwing first!" Darkkit called as he hooked a ball of moss in the air. Flamekit stretched up with his paws, trying to snatch the moss ball out of the air. At the last moment, Willowkit leaped up just a bit higher then Flamekit. She trapped the little ball between her dainty paws, and landed gracefully on the bare ground.

"Nice catch." Came a voice from the entrance. Flamekit swiveled his head around and saw that the cat that had spoken was the cat that he had seen talking to Sandstorm the night before. The cat looked old and worn. He blue-gray fur was rugged and matted, and her steps were heavy, like it was hard for her to carry on. Her eyes were the most disturbing. Her eyes didn't sparkle like his littermates' did. Even Sandstorm's eyes had that tiny glimmer behind their dull exterior. But this cat's eyes were glazed and lifeless. If it wasn't for the fact that the cat was breathing and moving right in front of him, Flamekit would have thought the cat was dead.

"Thank you." Willowkit replied proudly. She obviously hadn't noticed the lifeless look in the cat's eyes.

"You three would have made exceptional additions to ThunderClan." she sighed. She spun around, and began moving toward the exit of the nursery.

"Wait!" Flamekit called. She abruptly jerked her head around. "You were the leader of ThunderClan, right?" the gray she-cat's eyes sparked with some emotion. Nostalgia.

"Yes. I was Bluestar, leader of the greatest clan in the forest." she drew herself up to her full height; some pride returning to her stance. Flamekit could see that she used to be a proud and honorable cat. "But that was before Brokenstar ruled. Now I am Bluefur." she took a deep breath and slumped down on the ground. She gazed up at the sky as if she were expecting something. "I was once told that fire would save our clan. Where was that fire when we were fighting for our freedom, and our lives." she spat bitterly, still looking at the sky.

She gazed at the three littermates, who had their eyes locked on the former leader in wonder. Her eyes glazed over, even more then they already were, and her body became extremely tense.

"Bluefur." Flamekit whispered, flicking his tail in front of her eyes to get her attention. She didn't respond. "Bluefur?" Flamekit asked, more concerned now. She jerked awake from her trance, blinking fiercely to regain consciousness. Then she spoke, but it wasn't her real voice. It seemed like there were countless cats' voices were behind hers, giving her new strength.

"Althought the initial fire was put out, a new flame has been rekindled, and it will burn brighter than ever before."

Flamekit exchanged a confused glance with Willowkit.

"What?" Darkkit asked.

"It was a prophecy." Bluefur whispered. A new light was in her eyes. It was like the one Flamekit had seen in Sandstorm's eyes before. Though he still didn't know what the emotion was, he could tell it was a good thing. "It's about you!" Her stare turned to meet Flamekit's.

"What's going on?" Once again, a voice sounded at the entrance of the nursery. This time it was Sandstorm, along with Mudfur. _He probably wanted to follow up on my wounds._ Flamekit thought. The deep brown tom laid eyes on the orange kit, and immediately took on the same look that Bluefur had before she spoke those ominous words. When he finally came out of his trance, he too, had that strange emotion glimmering in his eyes.

"StarClan has not abandoned us." He finally declared. Without another word, he padded out of the den. Bluefur, who's tail was twitching with obvious excitement, seemed to be brought back to life. She mewed something so quiet, Flamekit almost didn't hear it.

"I guess fire will save the clans after all."


	4. Chapter 4

**No reviews? Aww. Oh well. As they say, the story must go on! **

Flamekit woke to a large paw prodding him.

"Flamekit, wake up." His mother's voice murmured.

"Why?" He grumbled groggily.

"Mudfur's gonna teach us about herbs!" Came Willowkit's voice.

"Shhhh. Be quiet, Willowkit. We don't want to wake Darkkit." Sandstorm shushed her.

"Sorry." she lamented. Flamekit struggled to open his eyes, excited about the prospect of learning something that no other cat knew. He carefully slipped out of his nest, careful not to disturb his sleeping brother. To his relief, the tabby flank of his littermate kept rising and falling at a steady rate.

Sandstorm motioned with her tail for him and Willowkit to follow, as she slipped out of a gap in the wall of brambles. Willowkit flashed an excited glance at Flamekit before following. The orange tom hopped easily out of the nursery, due to his small size.

He shivered in the leaf-fall air as he followed Willowkit's bobbing tail-tip. They weaved in and out of the undergrowth for what seemed like forever. Flamekit was stumbling with exhaustion when they stopped. They halted at a steep ravine covered in precarious rocks. Sandstorm's eyes glittered brighter than the stars as she stood at the top of the ravine. With a deep breath, she hopped down it with the greatest of ease, as if she had been doing it her whole life. Once she was at the bottom of the steep path, she turned back to the two kits.

"Now, you guys try it." she prompted. The two littermates exchanged worried glances. "It's not as scary as it looks, I promise. Just find pawholds and climb down."

Willowkit went first. She seemed very anxious, and she tripped a few times on the way down but she made it down alright. Flamekit, however make it down with practically no trouble. He slipped nimbly down the treacherous path.

Once all three of them were together, Sandstorm led them through a tunnel of gorse. The tunnel led them to an open clearing. It seemed worn, not in the bad way, but in the way that made it seem like dozens of cats had walked in this clearing for countless moons. There was a large rock, that didn't see, to hard to climb up onto. There was a clump of nettles near near a tree trunk where a den seemed to be. Not far off was a thorn bush, where it seemed practical to make another den. There was a tight weave of brambles and nettles at the far end near a tunnel of ferns. Lastly, there was a fallen tree, with bushes grown all around it that seemed quite cozy.

Sandstorm led the two kits across the clearing and to the fern tunnel. On the other side was a cozy space, with a rock that was split down the middle. Sitting in the clearing, were three cats. One of them was Mudfur, sitting with his eyes turned up toward the stars. Next to him, was the oldest cat that Flamekit had ever seen. He had gray hairs lining his dark tabby pelt. His fur was matted and grungy, while his pelt hung off him jaggedly. His ribs poked out at odd angles, like he hadn't eaten in moons.

"Sandstorm, why does he look so old?" Flamekit inquired.

"Because he's an elder." Sandstorm explained. "Brokenstar banished the elders from our camp, so they have to fend for themselves."

The last cat was a white tom with yellow eyes. He didn't look like the other cats Flamekit had seen, though. This cat sat tall and had a proud gleam in his eyes. This looked like a cat Flamekit could easily learn to respect. He carried himself with a pride that he didn't see in the way that the warriors around camp skulked.

"Flamekit, Willowkit, this is Barkface," Sandstorm motioned to the old tom. "And this is Whitestorm."

Flamekit dipped his head respectfully.

"Barkface and Mudfur are going to teach you two about being a medicine cat, and what that means. And Whitestorm is going to teach you about the warrior code." Sandstorm mewed. Willowkit looked so excited that she could burst. Flamekit, however, just had questions.

"Where are we?" He asked, turning his glinting, green eyes to his mother.

"This is the old ThunderClan camp."

"Are we going to come here every night?" He asked.

"Well, we want you kits to get a proper amount of sleep." Whitestorm answered. "So we will meet every other night. That way no cat will get suspicious." Flamekit nodded, happy that he had some answers. Sandstorm turned and left the den, with Whitestorm not far behind.

"Barkface used to be WindClan's medicine cat." Mudfur informed the kits.

"What happened to the ShadowClan and ThunderClan medicine cats?" Willowkit asked. Flamekit could see that she didn't understand the magnitude of what they were doing.

"Runningnose died five moons ago." Barkface lamented. "He wouldn't stop healing when Brokenstar ordered him to, so they killed him. And ThunderClan didn't have a medicine cat when ShadowClan took over."

Willowkit nodded, her eyes still bright. Mudfur and Barkface, however, had their heads bowed in grief. Flamekit, trying to diffuse the tension, spoke up.

"Why don't we get started?"

"Yes." Mudfur looked up, happy for an excuse to change the subject. "Yes. Let's get started." He padded over to the split in the rock, motioning for the two of them to follow. "This is where we stash our herbs, since they aren't allowed at camp anymore." Inside, it was too dark to see, but Flamekit could smell many different scents mingling together. "This is marigold, I used on you, Flamekit, when you were cuffed over the ear."

Willowkit nudged forward to inspect the plant, once she was done, Flamekit stepped forward to do the same. He inhaled deeply, noting its scent. He ran his paw over the ridged leaves. His eyes, finally adjusting to the darkness, took in the deep green of the leaves.

"Do any of you remember what I said they were used for?" Mudfur quizzed. Willowkit piped up almost instantly.

"They stop infection and help the wound heal."

"Yes. Very good Willowkit." Mudfur praised. Him and Barkface continued to show the two kits herbs and what their uses were. When the moon was setting, and Dawn's fingertips of rose were spreading on the horizon, Sandstorm told them that it was time to go. They trekked back to the camp, practically asleep on their paws.

Flamekit was relived once they slipped back into the nursery through the gap in the brambles. It seemed like nothing had ever been so comfortable, as he curled up on the bare ground next to his still sleeping brother.

(The next day)

"Come on you two, you're making this too easy for me!" Darkkit called as he flung the mossball toward them. Flamekit stretch halfheartedly to snatch it out of the air. He was to tired to do anything, really. The trek through the forest last night had been quite a lot for two four day old kits to handle. The ball landed on the ground. He had missed it. Again.

He was happy when a cat slipped through the barrier of brambles. It was Silverstream. The beautiful she cat was round with kits.

"Hey, there." she greeted.

"Hi Silverstream!" Darkkit chirped. Flamekit liked Silverstream. Her eyes were kind, not hardened like other warriors he had seen.

"How are you feeling?" Willowkit asked. For a moment, Flamekit didn't see a cat to young to analyze a situation, he saw a completely mature medicine cat, who knew exactly what she was doing.

"Oh, you know, large." she joked. "But, to be honest, I am overjoyed that I am having Graystripe's kits. We never would have been able to if there were still four clans." Flamekit's eyes widened.

"Do you mean that you _like_ the way Brokenstar is doing things?" He asked, incredulously.

"No!" Silverstream defended. "No, of course not. All I'm saying is that Graystripe and I would never have found each other if we were in different clans. He was in ThunderClan, and I was in RiverClan."

Darkkit shrugged, and Willowkit looked confused. The kits shuffled around in the dust, while Silverstream began to circle around, finding a good spot to lay down. She sighed.

"I wish we had some moss in here. The apprentices used to get moss for the elders and queens." she mewed wistfully. "Oh, but enough of me and my sighing. You kits go back to playing mossball." The silver queen began to groom herself, and Flamekit turned back to Darkkit, urging him to toss the ball again. Their ball was getting kind of gross. It was the one Sandstorm had given them the other day, and since they didn't have access to any moss, they had to keep using the one they had.

"Who's hungry?" Sandstorm's voice sounded from outside the barrier. The scent of warm, freshly killed prey wafted through the barrier of the nursery.

"Sandstorm, you shouldn't be so loud!" Silverstream whispered. "You know we're not supposed to catch prey for others. If warriors aren't strong enough to hunt for themselves-"

"Then they deserve to die." Sandstorm cut her off. "Yeah, I know. But you are almost two moons pregnant. You can't hunt for yourself."

"What if Brokenstar hurts you." Silverstream murmured.

"Please." Sandstorm rolled her eyes. "I am the mother of the only kits in the clan. Even if he won't admit it, he needs me."

Silverstream gave her a worried look, but accepted the vole that Sandstorm had laid at her paws.

Sandstorm ate, then urged her kits to feed, too. Once Flamekit had had his fill he curled up for a nap.

With Sandstorm and Silverstream's voices chattering away, he could almost imagine being in one of the Clans that everyone was longing for.

**I put an Odyssey reference in here. If anybody knows what it is, then tell me in a PM or a review. Anyway, see y'all next update.**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hello everybody! I'm back with another chapter. I'm very excited, because I have big plans for this story. Anyway, let me explain my Odyssey reference, since nobody guessed it. So, the Ancient Greeks pretty much made a god for everything that needed an explanation. For example, when your voice echos it is the work of of the goddess Echo. So Dawn was the Goddess of, well, the Dawn, and in the Odyssey when morning comes, it says: Dawn spread her fingertips of rose. That's your interesting fact of the day!**

**GU3SS1NG (Guest): Thank you! And I will.**

**Samjam75:**** Yay! I'm so glad.**

**Storm-Eyes-Osprey:**** Thank you! I just love Graystripe and Silverstream so much, I just had to put them in. **

**dalmationblack:**** Yeah. You're right about the Jamestown thing.**

**Leopardbreath (Guest):**** Well, here's more.**

Flamekit twisted his neck, trying to groom that hard to reach spot on his back. He needed to look his best; today's the day he is being made an apprentice. It had been three moons since he had started going to the former ThunderClan camp to learn about the ways of the old Clans. Willowkit had been very adept at learning the ways of the medicine cat, while Flamekit was far more interested in the Warrior Code. Whitestorm had taught him all about the different rules, and how they came to be.

Darkkit had grown increasingly distant from Flamekit and Willowkit, instead growing closer to Goldenflower's kit, Bramblekit, who was a moon younger than him. The two of them were the favorite of many senior warriors, because they were very willing to learn battle moves, and would fight until they dropped. It actually scared Flamekit how intense those were sometimes.

"Dustpelt, they're only three moons old." Flamekit was interrupted from his thoughts by his mother whispering to his father. Obviously, Sandstorm didn't want him to hear the conversation, but he couldn't help himself. He continued to groom himself, trying to look busy while he listened to Dustpelt's response.

"I know, Sandstorm. I know." Dustpelt lamented.

"They're too young." She cried. "What if they're pushed to hard? What if they end up like Firepaw, dead before their lives even began? It's happened to many times before."

"No kits of ours will be broken by anything." Dustpelt assured her. "After all, we didn't break, did we?"

Sandstorm took a deep breath.

"Do, we didn't." she replied. "You're right, Dustpelt. They will remain strong." Flamekit heard Sandstorm's pad away from his father and toward him. "Do you need some help with that, little one?" She stepped forward, and began to lick the spot Flamekit had been trying so hard to reach.

"I'm going to be an apprentice, Sandstorm." Flamekit protested. "I'm not little anymore."

"You'll always be little to me." She finished grooming his bright orange pelt. "Do me a favor, Flamekit?" The soon to be apprentice whirled around to face his mother.

"Anything."

"Don't die." Her green eyes glittered with intensity. "Do anything you have to do to _stay alive._"Flamekit was scared by the ferocity in his mother's voice. "Promise me."

"I-I promise." He stuttered. Sandstorm gave him a curt nod before padding off to help Darkkit groom his pelt. Flamekit looked on as Darkkit swiped up at Bramblekit with unsheathed claws, slicing the other kit's nose. Goldenflower's kit looked stunned for a moment, but he quickly recovered and leaped back into his 'battle' with Darkkit. Sandstorm stomped over to her Darkkit, scolding him for hurting Bramblekit. Darkkit didn't seem to care, just rolling his eyes as Sandstorm began to groom Darkkit's pelt.

"Let all cats strong enough to fight, gather underneath the Great Rock for a meeting." The leader of all cats in the forest, Brokenstar, spoke from the tall rock in the center of the camp. Slowly, a mass of cats gathered at the base of the rock. Flamekit walked over to stand below the rock, sitting up perfectly straight as his littermates joined him on either side. "These kits are strong enough now to become apprentices." The leader boomed. Looking around, Flamekit saw that some cats were exchanging concerned glances. _They don't think that we're strong enough to become apprentices._

"Darkkit, you are a tenacious kit, that deserves a mentor that will teach to fight like a true ShadowClan cat! Tigerclaw," A huge dark tabby that Flamekit had seen visit Goldenflower, Tawnykit, and Bramblekit in the nursery stepped forward, his eyes sparkling with triumph. "I trust that you will teach Darkpaw the ways of the forest."

"I will do my best." He answered, touching Darkkit's nose.  
"Willowkit, from this day forward, until you earn your warrior name, you will be known as Willowpaw. Your mentor will be Russetfur. A battle scarred, russet warrior walked forward, and touched noses with her new apprentice.

"Russetfur, I trust that you will pass on all of your incredible skill to young Willowpaw."

"Of course." Russetfur dipped her head respectfully.

"Flamekit, until you earn your warrior name, you will be known as Flamepaw. I will be this young cat's mentor." Gasps rippled throughout the crowd as Brokenstar hopped down from the Great Rock to meet is new apprentice. Flamepaw's eyes widened in shock. _Brokenstar is going to be _my _mentor?!_ The orange kit was still shell shocked, and the process of touching noses with his new mentor was a blur. The clan cheered their new names, then dispersed, getting back to their own duties.

Brokenstar began to pad out of the hollow, motioning with his tail for Flamepaw to follow. He plodded after his new mentor, not wanting to be scolded for falling behind. Flamepaw trailed after Brokenstar, eager to see the forest for the first time. Of course, he had seen the way to get to ThunderClan camp, but he had never had a proper tour.

They had only been walking for a few minutes, when Brokenstar whipped around to face Flamepaw, his teeth barred. Without warning, he leapt on the new apprentice. Before Flamepaw could register what was happening, Brokenstar was crushing the air out of the orange tom's lungs. He thought back to all of those late nights where he learned about the warrior code with Whitestorm. He had said that a warrior didn't need to prey on the weak to prove his skill.

Flamepaw winced as teeth met his scruff sharply. _I guess I'll have to fight back._ He thought. _He's too big for me to try and overpower, so it looks like I will have to use my small size to my advantage._ Thinking quickly, he let himself go limp, as if he was beaten. Brokenstar relaxed his grip, confident that he had won the battle. Seeing his chance, Flamepaw brought his hind legs into the tender part of his mentor's belly. He felt his small claws pierce through skin. His mentor inhaled sharply. Flamepaw wriggled out from beneath the larger cat, and whirled back around to face him, lest he attack again.

Now recovered from the shock of being wounded by an apprentice, mirrored Flamepaw's crouch. The young cat scanned his mentor's face, searching for any sign that he was going to attack again. As quickly as his attack happened, Brokenstar's expression and stance turned neutral again.

"Impressive, for a kit like you." He sniffed disdainfully. "Lesson one, always be prepared to fight."

Flamepaw's eyes widened in surprise.

"You attacked me just to prove that?" He questioned sharply. He wasn't sure he liked his mentor's motives. Brokenstar pulled his lips back into a cruel sneer as he came dangerously close to his apprentice's face.

"Do you have a problem with my teaching methods?" He growled, his hot breath washing over Flamepaw.

"I just don't understand them." He answered. Whitestorm had always encouraged him to ask questions while he was teaching him, Flamepaw figured Brokenstar wouldn't be any different. He was very wrong. Brokenstar lashed out with a paw, and quickly raked his claws over the side of Flamepaw's face.

The orange tom didn't make a sound as his own blood dripped down from his muzzle and down onto the forest floor.

"Well, start understanding." Brokenstar rumbled. He turned away and padded further into the forest. Flamepaw followed, trying to ignore the stinging in his face. He would have Willowpaw and Mudfur look at the scratch when he got back to camp, but for now, he had to show Brokenstar that he was resilient. If he wasn't, he had a feeling he wouldn't last long in ShadowClan. "Come, there is territory to see." The leader padded off into the forest as if nothing had happened. Flamepaw followed, still stunned.

"This is the Treecut place. In greenleaf, the Twolegs cut down this patch of trees."

"Why do they do that?" Flamepaw was answered with a sharp kit to his side, sending him sprawling onto the forest floor. He lay there for a moment, winded, as Brokenstar stood over him.

"We do not concern ourselves with silly Twolegs in my clan." He growled. "You'd best learn that." He padded off, obviously intending to continue his tour. Flamepaw got up to follow, wincing as he felt the bruise forming where Brokenstar had kicked him. He quickly caught up to his mentor, and followed him until they reached a rank smelling, black strip of earth. Flamepaw wrinkled his nose. "This is the Thunderpath. Monsters fly along here fast enough to kill a cat."

The two cats plodded through the huge expanse of territory. Brokenstar would give Flamepaw brief explanation of things they passed. Finally, after an entire day of walking through the territory, and being harmed every time he asked any sort of question, they reentered Fourtrees.

"Get some rest, we meet here at dawn tomorrow." Brokenstar told him.

"What about prey? Shouldn't I eat?" Brokenstar slowly turned to meet Flamepaw's gaze. His eyes showed no signs of compassion as he said his next words.

"Prey is for cats who deserve to survive." Flamepaw flinched, expecting his mentor to strike him once again, but he never did. Instead, he just turned and stalked off. Flamepaw hung his head; he had never been so tired in his life. Sighing, he thumped over to the thornbush that served as the apprentice's den. There were already other nests made where other apprentice's slept, so Flamepaw had to make his own. He ventured around camp until he had scraped together enough moss and ferns for a comfortable enough nest. Placing them at the edge of the den, he circled into his nest. He fell asleep almost before his head hit the ground.


	6. Chapter 6

**Hello all you lovely people! It is I, Hawkpath, back with another update. I just want to thank everybody who has reviewed, followed, and favorited the story so far. It may not seem like much, but it makes me feel all fuzzy on the inside. But enough of my babbling, on with the things that I do!**

**Snowystripe34869:**** That was the point I was trying to get across. **

"Get up!" Pain exploded in Flamepaw's ear as Brokenstar's claws raked through it. His eyes immediately jolted open. "The sun rose a long time ago. It's time for training." The orange tom struggled to sit up, still blinking sleep out of his eyes. As quickly as he could, he groomed his fur, and followed Brokenstar out into the camp. His belly grumbled and twisted with hunger, and he gazed over at the fresh kill pile longingly. He shook himself out of his hungry trance, and followed his mentor out of camp, trying to ignore the blood that was trickling down his face from his ear.

_It's only my second day as an apprentice, and my ears have already been reduced to shreds._ Flamepaw thought bitterly. He sighed inwardly, still padding after Brokenstar. Eventually, he stopped at a little patch of trees and lush undergrowth by the river.

"Now listen up, kit, cuz I'm only going to teach this to you once." Brokenstar grumbled, turning to face his apprentice. "Show me your hunting crouch."

Flamepaw fixed his body into what he thought was a hunting crouch. He focused on keeping his body perfectly still as his mentor circled around him. Brokenstar reached forward with his muzzle. Flamepaw flinched, expecting to be injured for doing something wrong.

Instead, he just adjusted Flamepaw's back paws gently. He took the orange tom's tail lightly in his jaw, and moved it closer to the ground, so it was just barely floating over the leaves.

Flamepaw was surprised at Brokenstar's actions, to say the least. He was being an understanding, helpful mentor.

"Bring your front paws closer to your body, that way, you can build up strength in your hind legs." Flamepaw did as the leader said, finding that the crouch now felt much more natural. He began to stalk forward, pretending that there was prey in the bush ahead. "Very good, Flamepaw." The apprentice looked up sharply at his mentor's praise. "I'm going back to camp. I don't want you to come back until you've caught three pieces of prey. If you come back before sunset, I'll teach you some fighting techniques." With that, the dark tabby dictator walked away.

_He almost seemed like a normal mentor for a moment there. _Flamepaw thought as he turned to the forest to hunt. He trekked through ThunderClan's former territory, it was where he seemed to be most comfortable, seeing as how he traveled through it every other night for the duration of his kithood.

It wasn't long before he spotted a rustling patch of ferns. Tasting the air, he scented the musk of mouse. He immediately slipped into his hunting crouch, wondering how to proceed. Brokenstar hadn't really _told _him how to catch prey. Deciding to just go for it, he stalked forward. Almost instantly, the mouse perked up and scuttled off.

_ Fox dung. _Flamepaw thought bitterly, racking his brain for ideas. He began to pace absentmindedly, as the wind tickled the fur on his ear. _That's it! _Orange tom's head snapped up as he realized what he had to do. _I have to keep downwind of the prey!_ He pranced off into the forest, very pleased with himself. After a while, he came to a stream.

He tasted the air, once again scenting a mouse, which he spotted a moment later nibbling on a beech nut. Flamepaw carefully moved downwind of the small creature. _What was it that Whitestorm had said about mice? _He pondered. _Oh yeah! He said that a mouse will feel your pawsteps through the ground if you aren't careful._

Flamepaw began to creep forward, making his paws absolutely silent. After what seemed like an eternity, he was within jumping distance of the mouse. He leaped, coming down right on top of the prey. He swiftly bit it in the neck, killing it instantly.

Pride flooded throughout his body as he held up his first kill. _So _this _is what it feels like to be a Warrior! _Flamepaw understood why Whitestorm, Sandstorm, and Dustpelt spoke so fondly about the warrior code. _Hunting for my Clan is the best feeling ever!_

Deciding to move on, he buried the mouse. He stalked farther into the forest, hoping to find more prey. Soon enough, he spotted a sparrow scuffling through the undergrowth. Using the same method that he used with the mouse, he stalked up to the sparrow. He was only a few pawsteps away from pouncing, when he stepped on a twig. The noise was practically deafening in the silent forest, and the sparrow fluttered its wings and began to lift off.

Before it could fly off however, Flamepaw took a flying leap, and brought it back down to the ground. He killed it quickly, and buried it with the mouse.

A few moments later, he found a squirrel searching for nuts. He quickly and easily killed it.

"I'm getting pretty good at this!" Flamepaw muttered, gathering his prey. The orange tom returned to camp, proudly bearing his prey. No cat really played him much mind, though. They just went about their normal business. Flamepaw, not at all deterred by his Clanmates' coldness, set his prey on the pile.

"Hey, Flamepaw, did you catch all of that prey?" He heard Willowpaw's voice off to his left.

"Yup!" He faced his sister, standing a bit taller.

"That's amazing!" she exclaimed. "You're gonna be one of the best hunters in the clan at this rate!"

"I sure hope so." the orange tom replied.

"Willowpaw, its time for training, come on!" Russetfur's sharp call broke through their conversation.

"Well, I've gotta go." Willowpaw sighed. "But save me a spot next to you by the prey pile tonight. We'll share that squirrel that you caught."

"Willowpaw! If you're quite done chatting, I would like to begin our training session." Russetfur called once again. Willowpaw gave her brother a look, and trotted off toward her mentor.

"Flamepaw!" The apprentice turned toward the sharp voice that had yelled his name. The voice had come from Brokenstar. "Did you catch three pieces of prey?"

"Yes I did." He said, puffing out his chest and gesturing to the prey he had recently put on the pile. His mentor inspected he prey he caught and huffed in what Flamepaw figured was approval. Brokenstar glanced up at the sky, checking the position of the sun. "There is still a while until sunset. I suppose I have time to teach you some battle techniques."

Flamepaw gave a little bounce of excitement. What apprentice in their right mind _wouldn't _be excited about learning battle moves? He happily pranced behind his mentor as they made their way back into the huge forest that the Clan inhabited. After a few minutes of walking in silence, they reached a mossy hollow, where it wouldn't hurt to fall down.  
Brokenstar turned abruptly to face his apprentice.

"We'll start with something simple." Brokenstar grumbled. "This is the forward swipe. Keep your balance on your hind legs, and swipe high with your right paw, and low with your left."

The orange tom reared up, trying to emulate the move Brokenstar just demonstrated. He swiped his right paw high, and his left paw low.

"Make the move quicker, and put more weight on your back right paw." Brokenstar advised. Flamepaw took the advice and applied it to his move, trying again. This time, he didn't feel so unbalanced. Brokenstar nodded sharply after Flamepaw finished this move, and immediately moved on to the next one.

They trained for StarClan knows how long, and Flamepaw was learning at an incredibly fast rate. In the span of a few hours, he had gone from learning forward stripes and ducks, to learning how to swipe a cat's legs from under them from them and pin them down. Needless to say, Flamepaw was exhausted. All he wanted to do was sleep for a moon.

"Brokenstar?" He started, knowing full well that what he was about to say could get him fiercely scolded.

"Yes?" He rumbled.

"It's already past sunset, shouldn't we be getting back to camp?"

"We will leave after I teach you one last move." He replied. Flamepaw sighed in relief. He wasn't going to be physically reprimanded. This time.

"Okay. What's the last move?" Instead of speaking, Brokenstar demonstrated the move. He used the move he learned earlier, the one that could be used to pin another cat down. He pinned down an imaginary cat, and lunged forward, chomping down on the cat's imaginary neck. Flamepaw's eyes widened in shock.

"B-but that's a killing move." the orange tom stuttered.

"Is there a problem with that?" Brokenstar growled, stepping slowly and menacingly towards his apprentice.

"T-the warrior code says we shouldn't kill other cats." Flamepaw answered. Brokenstar's eyes flashed with pure defiance.

"The warrior code is forbidden in my clan." Brokenstar told Flamepaw, his voice dangerously sweet as he continued to walk toward the young cat. "Who, might I ask, has been teaching you about the warrior code?"

Flamepaw didn't want to rat Whitestorm out. He was afraid of what his mentor would do to the old tom. But Brokenstar obviously wasn't going to let this go.

"N-nobody." Flamepaw answered weakly, his voice shaking even more than it was before. Brokenstar bared his teeth and leaped at Flamepaw, pinning him down. He unsheathed his claws, poking the sharp barbs into the young tom's fur. The leader leaned in close to Flamepaw's face and growled quietly.

"Who has been teaching you about the warrior code?" As he asked this question again, he raked his claws slowly and painfully through his apprentice's skin, drawing blood. Flamepaw couldn't keep the squeaks of pain from rising in his throat. He had been hurt before, mostly by senior warriors that he had angered, but nothing compared to the clawing that he was receiving right now. And, as far as he could see, Brokenstar had no intention of stopping anytime soon.

As much as he didn't want to get Whitestorm in trouble, the pain was just too much for him.

"It was Whitestorm!" Flamepaw blurted. As soon as he said it, Brokenstar released him from his grip.

"That no good piece of fox dung." the leader spat. "I always knew he wasn't loyal." Brokenstar spun around and sprinted off in the direction of camp. Flamepaw, worried about Whitestorm, immediately followed. However, his short legs didn't carry him as fast as Brokenstar's did, so he fell behind.

By the time he got back to Fourtrees, the whole clan was gathered around two cats. Flamepaw shoved his way through the crowd, needing to see what was happening.

In the middle of the circle of cats, stood Brokenstar and Whitestorm. They were circling each other. Brokenstar had a look of rage and hostility on his face, while Whitestorm was stunningly calm.

"So you've been teaching cats the warrior code, I hear." Brokenstar rumbled. "That's against the leader's word, and according to your _precious code,_ my word is law."

"I will never accept you as my leader!" Whitestorm spat at Brokenstar. "Bluestar is the cat I would die for, not you."

Without warning, Brokenstar leaped at Whitestorm. They began to claw and bite at each other viciously. Flamepaw wanted to go and help Whitestorm, but was afraid of the consequences. This seemed to be the case with a lot of the other cats watching this heartbreaking scene.

Whitestorm was battling with all his might, but he was old, and any cat could see that he was losing energy; fast. It wasn't long until Brokenstar had Whitestorm pinned down. Before the leader could deal the killing blow, however Whitestorm broke in.

"Use your time wisely, Brokentail, because it is coming to an end. The flame isn't extinguished at all."

Brokenstar smirked, thinking nothing of Whitestorm's words. He lunged forward and sunk his teeth into Whitestorm's neck. He left the white tom on the ground to bleed out, as he walked over to the fresh kill pile like nothing had happened.

"Whitestorm!" Flamepaw broke the silence that had covered the camp. The orange tom rushed forward to his dying friend. "Whitestorm, I'm sorry! He wouldn't stop hurting me until I told him that you were teaching me the warrior code."

"It's okay, Flamepaw." Whitestorm wheezed, coughing up some blood. "I knew my time was coming soon. Don't blame yourself, Brokenstar would have killed you if you hadn't told him."

Flamepaw bowed his head, burying his muzzle in Whitestorm's fur.

"Flamepaw, listen to me" the white tom said. "You are the one that will bring order back to the Clans. You will be the one that will save us from Brokenstar's terror. Your path will be a hard one to walk, but it will be rewarding. Just remember that I will always be with you." the noble tom slowly closed his eyes, took one last shuddering breath, and then moved no more.


End file.
